A nonprofit formed last year by the St. Paul Downtown Alliance has acquired yet another troubled building from the former portfolio of Madison Equities — the 25-story U.S. Bank Center, which had been scheduled to go to auction later this month.

The office building, located at 101 East Fifth St., was sold by former lender First Interstate Bank of Omaha, which held its distressed mortgage. In announcing the acquisition on Thursday, the St. Paul Downtown Development Corporation did not disclose full financial details except to say in a written statement that the purchase was “fully funded by private investment, and no public funds were involved.”

The Downtown Development Corporation closed on the bank note on Dec. 30.

“U.S. Bank Center is a key asset on Fifth Street, a property that will be critical to bridging the vibrancy of the entertainment district and Lowertown,” said Development Corporation President Dave Higgins, in the statement. “Acquiring this property’s debt gives the SPDDC additional influence on the continuing stabilization of the downtown core.”

The acquisition was praised by new St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, who said in the statement that “a thriving downtown and a functional urban core will make our city far more desirable for people to live, work and do business here. … I am confident that the St. Paul Downtown Development Corporation’s acquisition of the U.S. Bank Center mortgage to their growing portfolio will open more doors and possibilities in St. Paul.”

The building, spanning more than 516,000 square feet, includes 25 floors of office and commercial space, as well as a 348-stall parking ramp. The skyway-connected property faces the Green Line light rail corridor’s Central Station and was recently listed as 26% occupied. It fell into foreclosure a year ago, and was initially listed to be up for auction Nov. 10 through Nov. 12.

A listing broker with Colliers International said last month that title work and other issues had repeatedly delayed the sale, which was advertised with a minimum starting bid of $1 million. The minimum bid could yet be lowered, he said at the time, before the scheduled auction on Jan. 12.

In mid-2024, U.S. Bank announced it would not renew its office lease on nine floors at U.S. Bank Center, though it chose to keep a skyway branch open in the building.

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The Downtown Development Corporation, which was formed in early 2025, has been steadily acquiring office buildings, commercial centers and parking ramps downtown for the past three months. In October, it purchased the sprawling Alliance Bank Center. In November, it acquired the Capital City Plaza parking ramp. In December, it bought the Empire Building on Robert Street and the single-story Endicott Arcade annex building adjoining it on 5th Street.

Each structure had been owned in the recent past by Madison Equities, once downtown St. Paul’s most prominent property owner. Following the death of company principal James Crockarell in January 2024, Madison put most of its downtown portfolio up for sale, though that hasn’t prevented many of its buildings from falling into foreclosure and being sold off by major lenders.